Motor-cycle seat and support therefor.



J. L. MILLER.

MOTOR CYCLE SEAT AND SUPPORT THEREFOR.

APPLICATION FILED DBO. 4, 1912.

Patented Aug. 26, 1913.

From 5 GRAPH c0., WASHINGTON. D. :4

COLUMUIA UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOI-IN L. MILLER, OF PAUL-S3030, NE-W JERSEY.

MOTOR-CYCLE SEAT AND SUPPORT THEREFOR.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN L. MILLER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Paulsboro, county of Gloucester, and State of New Jersey,have invented a new and useful Improvement in Motor-Cycle Sea-ts andSupports Therefor, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription, reference beinghad to theaccompanying drawings, which forma part of this specification.

My invention relates to motor cycles and particularly to saddles orseats therefor, and also to supports for the same.

The invention comprises a double seat adapted for the support of tworiders side by side, said seats being so constructed and connected as toprovide an intermediate saddle for the support of a single rider,thereby adapting the cycle to carry either one or two riders.

The invention also comprises means for supporting the combination doubleseat and single saddle.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a motor cycle embodyingmy improvement. Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is asection on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a plan view of the seat. 7

The different members of the main frame are designated by the letters a,Z), 0, (Z and e. The engine and crank casing is represented by f, thefront wheel by r and the rear wheel by h. These parts do not involve anysubstantial departure from the ordinary motor cycle and need not,therefore, be more particularly described;

The combination double seat and single saddle comprises an elevatedcentral saddleshaped member 10 and depressed side members shaped to formseats 11. The side walls of the saddle 10 form the inner side walls ofthe seats 11. The rear Walls and outer side walls of the seats 11 extendupward to apis bent upward within the saddle member 10 and rests uponand is secured to a saddlesupporting bar 15, which, like the ordmarysaddlesupporting bar 1s pivoted on a collar 16 secured to 'the'member cof the frame. The front and central portion of the bar 15 Specificationof Letters Patent.

Application filed December 4, 1912;

Patented Aug; 26,1913. Serial No. 734,848.

is of flat shape and arranged on edge and rests within a notch in theupper end of the member 0 of the main frame, while its rear portion isof circular cross-section and ex tends into a hanger 17, to which it isclamped. Supported from the hanger is an inverted U-shaped frame 18,having at its lower ends fixed heads 19. The rearwardly extendingmembers 13 of the saddle-supporting frame carry collars 20, throughwhich extend the depending le s of the frame 18, the collars 20 beingfixedly secured to said legs. The diagonally downwardly extendingmembers 14 of the saddle supporting frame are secured at their lowerends to the heads 19 of the U-shaped frame 18 Near their lower ends thelegs of the frame 18 extend loosely through sleeves 21, which aresupported from the main frame as hereinafter described. Supportingsprings 22 are confined between the collars 20 and sleeves 21 andsprings 23 are confined between sleeves 21 and heads 19. Projectingforward from the axle on both sides of the rear wheel it are arms 24.Secured to or integral with the outer ends of arms 24- are the upwardlyextending arms 25, which converge and extend over the forks of themember a of the main frame and are secured thereto. To this frame 21-25are pivoted the sleeves 21. Thus the combination double seat and singlesaddle is supported on a frame which, while giving ample support totheseat and being itself supported with the necessary stability, can yieldin every direction to the degree required to absorb shocks andcomfortably support the rider or riders.

One ofthe difficulties inherent in the con struction of a motor cycle isto so locate the seat that the weight of the rider will be properlydistributed between the front and rear wheels, it being desirable thatthe rear wheel shall bear a weight adequate to insure efficienttraction, while it is also desirable that the front wheel. shall at alltimes bear the degree of weight necessary to enable proper steering.These difficulties are enhanced in a two seated cycle: and. it isobvious that when. these seats are arranged in tandem, the properdistribution of the load will take place only when both seats areoccupied; for if a single rider occupies either of the seats, one or theother of the wheels will bear an improper proportion of the weight. Ifthe seats are arranged side by side, then, while the cycle can bepropelled by a single rider, occupying either seat, this obviouslyinvolves the sidewise unbalancing of the machine. With my improvedconstruction, however, the combination seat and saddle can be located ata point in the longitudinal extension of the cyclebest adapted to meetthe load-distribution requirement, whether the cycle be occupied byeither one or two riders. F urther, noadjustment whatever is necessaryto adapt the cycle to either condition; the cycle being always adjustedto receive either one rider or two.

lVhile the supporting means for the combination double seat and singlesaddle is of special value to meet the requirements of my invention, itis obvious that such means are also adapted for the support of a singleor double saddle of any construction.

WVhile the preferred embodiment of my invention involves a saddleshapedcentral seat and depressed side seats, my invention, in its broaderaspect, is not limited to this precise arrangement.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim and desire toprotect by Letters Patent is:

1. A saddle for cycles comprising two outer seats arranged transverselyrelatively one to the other and adapted for the support of two riders,and an intermediate single seat connecting the outer seats and adaptedfor the support of a single rider.

2. A saddle for cycles comprising a central seat arranged for thesupport of a single rider, and outer seats for the support of tworiders, said outer seats being arranged on opposite sides of the centralseat and having side walls common to the side walls of the central seat.

3. A saddle for cycles comprising an elevated central seat having aconvexly shaped upper face of saddle shape and concavely shaped outerseats on opposite sides and below the level of the central seat.

4. A saddle for cycles comprising two side seats each having a seatproper and upwardly extending rear and side walls, and an elevatedcentral seat connecting the up per portions of the inner walls of thetwo side seats.

5. The combination with the main frame, of a saddle, a saddle-supportingframe upon which the saddle rests, a bar pivoted on the main frame, aframe hung from said bar, the saddle supporting frame being secured tothe hanging frame, a fourth frame supported from the main frame, andsprings in terposed between .the fourth frame and the saddle-supportingand hanging frames.

6. The combination with the main frame, of a saddle, a saddle-supportingframe, a bar pivoted on the main frame, a frame hung from said bar andsecured to the saddle supporting frame, a fourth frame supported fromthe 'main frame, members pivoted on the fourth frame and sleeved on thehanging frame, and springs interposed betwen said members and thesaddle-supporting and hanging frames.

7. The combination with the main frame, of a-saddle, a saddle-supportingframe, a bar pivoted on the main frame, a two-legged frame hung fromsaid bar, the saddle supporting frame being secured to both legs of thelast named frame at the upper and lower parts thereof, members sleevedon said legs, springs supported by said members and supporting the twolast-named frames, and means supporting said members from the mainframe.

8. The combination with the main frame, of a saddle, a saddle-supportingframe, a bar pivoted on the main frame, a two-legged frame hung fromsaid bar, the saddle supporting frame being secured to both legs of thelast named frame at the upper and lower parts thereof, sleeves on saidlegs, springs above and supported by said sleeves and supporting the twolast named frames, springs below said sleeves and between the same andthe two last named frames, and means by which the sleeves are pivotallysupported from the main frame.

9. The combination with the main frame, of a saddle, a saddle-supportingframe comprising a transverse member, rearwardly extending members anddownwardly and diagonally extending members; a bar pivoted on the mainframe and directly supporting the central part of said transversemember, a two legged-frame hung from said bar, collars on the upperportions of the legs of the last named frame and secured both to thelegs and to said rearwardly extending members, heads on the lowerportions of said legs and secured both to the legs and to saiddownwardly diagonally extending members, sleeves loose on the legsbetween said collars and heads, relatively long springs between saidsleeves and collars, relatively short springs between said sleeves andheads, and means by which the sleeves are pivotally supported from themain frame.

10. The combination with the main frame, of a saddle comprising anupraised central portion and depressed side portions, a saddlesupporting frame including a transversely extending member having acentral portion extending upward between the side portions of the seat,a bar pivoted on the main frame and extending rearward between the sideportions of the seat and directly supporting the upwardly extendingcentral portion of the transverse member of the saddlesupporting frame,a frame supported by said bar and supporting the saddle-support ingframe, springs supporting the two last named frames, members supportingthe springs, and means by which said members are pivotally supportedfrom the main frame.

11. The combination with the main frame, of sleeves pivotally supportedtherefrom, a frame comprising two upright legs extending through saidsleeves, springs between said sleeves and the last-named frame, asaddle, a saddle supporting frame secured to the last named frame, andmeans by which the two-legged frame is rockingly supported on the mainframe.

12. The combination with the main frame, of a saddle, asaddle-supporting frame, a two legged frame secured to the saddle sup--porting frame at the upper and lower portions of each leg, meansrockingly supporting the two legged frame on the main frame, sleevesthrough which said legs extend, springs between said sleeves and the twolegged frame and saddle-supporting frame, and means by which saidsleeves are pivotally supported from the main frame.

In testimony of which invention, I have hereunto set my hand, atPhiladelphia, on this 3d day of December, 1912.

JOHN L. MILLER.

Witnesses:

M. M. HAMIL'roN, E. E. \VALL.

Gop'ies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). G.

